From Simple Streaming To Complex Betting Systems – How Soulbound Is Transforming The Way We Watch Gaming Content

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Victoria d’Este

Printed: November 01, 2024 at 5:36 am Up to date: November 01, 2024 at 5:36 am

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November 01, 2024 at 5:36 am

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The explosive progress of prediction markets, notably in gaming, has created distinctive alternatives for modern streaming platforms. On this interview, Casey Grooms, co-founder of Soulbound, discusses how his platform is revolutionizing sport streaming by integrating prediction markets with conventional content material creation. Casey shares insights on Soulbound’s technique to reinforce viewer engagement, create new income streams for streamers, and bridge the hole between Web2 and Web3 gaming communities.

Given the current explosive progress in prediction markets, what do you suppose has fueled this sudden spike, and what can we anticipate within the subsequent couple of months?

The politics have positively fueled this spike in prediction markets. There have additionally been a few different developments available in the market. Within the U.S., the courts not too long ago dominated in favor of the legalization of prediction markets, with a separate firm referred to as Carsey, I imagine, being the one formally accredited entity to function legally within the U.S. to this point. This has generated loads of momentum. 

The Trump and Harris presidential election, together with the growing legality and regulation round prediction markets, have contributed to this progress. Because the legality eases, extra opponents will enter the house, and it’ll begin to turn into authorized on a state-by-state foundation. Customers can even be capable to take leverage on prime of their predictions.

Do you foresee any challenges or disruptions within the prediction market business within the subsequent couple of months?

Any disruption would solely be on the legality facet. Apart from that, I believe it’s solely going to proceed rising and get extra widespread adoption. It’s now being featured within the press, just like the Wall Road Journal and New York Instances, virtually weekly, referencing Polymarket and different prediction markets. 

Increasingly more mainstream individuals and non-Web3 people will perceive how prediction markets work and the way they will affect or not affect issues, and alter public opinion. Persons are additionally wanting on the prediction marketplace for the U.S. election as an indicator of who will win, and so they’re excited about whether or not there are any dangerous actors influencing the prediction market and learn how to mitigate these circumstances.

As you’re a streaming platform, how do you’re employed with the prediction markets?

Anybody can stream any sport, and I can create a prediction market on prime of that. We’re targeted extra on in-stream prediction markets, like whether or not I’m going to win or lose a match in an esports sport. The streamers themselves will get a share of the pool as nicely, so that they’re incomes cash and a portion of that pool simply by taking part in the sport and creating partaking content material.

What measures must be taken to make sure that your streaming platform doesn’t turn into the second OnlyFans?

I believe it’s very simple for us to keep up a Twitch-style, game-heavy dominance in what we’re doing. All of our companions are sport builders themselves, so it’s not like we’re working with OnlyFans-style creators. If something inappropriate does occur, it’s very simple for us to dam or ban it. We will even make it behind a paywall, the place customers have to purchase an NFT to enter the chat, however I don’t suppose that’s going to be needed anytime quickly. Our viewers could be very gamer-heavy, so nobody is absolutely coming to Soulbound to search out that sort of content material.

What incentives do you intend to implement sooner or later for each streamers and the viewers?

We’re going so as to add loads of new options to extend engagement. Subsequent week, we’re including a channel web page that’s much like Twitch, the place customers can chat with the streamer in real-time. We now have the prediction options and the “Dare” characteristic coming quickly, which can drive extra engagement. 

We’re additionally planning to start out scheduling contests and leaning extra towards the esports realm, the place customers can guess on groups in the course of the streams. We’re additionally going to make it simple for video games to sponsor streamers straight, permitting them to immediately pay streamers to show logos or banners on the stream. It will create extra engagement and income alternatives for the streamers.

What’s the present state of Web3 gaming? How engaged are the builders and gamers in streaming these video games?

Proper now, we differentiate between Web2 and Web3, however our streamers can stream any sport, and it doesn’t matter what the sport is working on. Who’s paying us cash proper now simply occurs to be Web3 video games, particularly as a result of they’ve virtually no customers, and so they’re attempting to get extra engagement and customers for his or her video games. Web3 video games like Shrapnel and Off the Grid are spending some huge cash on Twitch campaigns to get extra streamers to play their video games and generate curiosity. 

That is opening the door for the way we’re working as a enterprise mannequin. If Web2 video games wish to come to Soulbound to search out extra customers, they will simply pay streamers to stream their video games, and that’s what we’re constructing in direction of. Whether or not the sport is Web2 or Web3, it’s irrelevant to us – we’re targeted on creating content material and fascinating the viewers.

Is gaming streaming as in style proper now because it was 10 years in the past?

Gaming streaming is definitely growing in recognition. Should you take a look at the stream charts, you’ll see the variety of hours streamed and hours considered, which has been steadily growing. Ninja remains to be streaming, totally on YouTube, after the Twitch controversy. You’ll be able to see that there have been 51 million distinctive viewers on Twitch this September. 

It’s turning into a worldwide phenomenon, with a few of the greatest streamers now coming from Spanish-speaking nations. The business is not only a US and European factor anymore – it’s turning into a lot larger globally. There’s additionally a rising development of VTubers, the place streamers use anime-style digital avatars to stream as a substitute of displaying their faces.

How do you suppose AI will affect prediction markets and dwell streaming sooner or later?

It’s positively going to get extra attention-grabbing sooner or later, but it surely’s exhausting to foretell precisely how. VTubing remains to be a comparatively new development, however it’s simply actually taking off this yr. Sooner or later, we might see VTubers creating their very own NFT collections round their personalities and identities. 

These NFT traits might then give customers particular skills or boosts throughout the platform, including actual financial worth to the traits. Whether or not AI is straight concerned in creating these traits or simply the underlying performance, it’s exhausting to say. For our platform, we’re not closely targeted on AI proper now, however we’re positively open to exploring the way it might improve the expertise for each streamers and viewers going ahead.